About Time
by The Writer On the Wall
Summary: In a desperate move, Bill Adama decides to use a sepcial machine, created by Gaius Baltar, to go back in time to his youth and look for Roslin. He thought he had nothing to lose by doing it, but something went completely wrong... In another time, Raydor and the Major Crimes division start investigating a murder with an unusual suspect.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

Bill Adama was sitting to the table in his cabin. The sun was rising, and through the large window he could see the divine light painting the sky in pink and orange. A thin line of yellow was kissing the ground in the horizon. He liked getting up early every day to see this miracle happening. He used to amuse himself with the thought of watching the sunrise with her, when he was still on the Galactica… But she didn't make it. He tried not to think about her too much during the day, keeping himself busy with researching the surroundings of his cabin in this new world he was living in. But whenever he had a little break, a moment of silence… She was all he could think of.

His eyes got teary as he watched the sun continuing to rise. This angelic light always reminded him of her. He often imagined her sitting next to him, watching the sunrise as the light fell on her face. When her image disappeared, he always felt like he was about to go crazy from loneliness. Many times he thought about putting an end to it all and joining her. But he knew she wouldn't want him to do it. Not after everything they've been through in the search of this new world, the promised land.

The sun was now fully out, gracing the sky with its soft, morning rays. Bill got up on his feet and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. He felt so old and tired from life. He turned to walk to his underground food storage, when he heard a knock on the door. He turned around and walked to the door, opening it slightly to see who it was.

"Lee!" he called happily when he saw his son. He opened the door some more and gave him a warm hug. Lee smiled to him. He looked like he could use a shower, and his eyes were weary. Bill assumed he just arrived from another mission.

"Dad. It's good to see you…" Lee stopped before saying 'alive'. He entered the cabin after his dad and shut the door behind him. "I know I don't come here often enough," he started to apologize.

"Forget about it. I know you're busy with the research team. Any interesting findings lately?" Bill changed the subject. He had no intention of pouring his heart out about his loneliness.

"Actually…" Lee started to say as he was sitting down to the table. Bill looked at him with interest and sat right after him. "We didn't find anything new of importance, but Baltar…"

Now Bill was seriously intrigued. He knows, from Lee's updates, that Baltar had built himself a little lab with the equipment he managed to bring from the Galactica. That was the only time Bill actually traveled away from his cabin. He met with Baltar and asked if he could build something to take him back to the past. He remembered Baltar's smirk as he voiced the idea. "No one has ever managed that, Adama. What makes you think I can?" Baltar chuckled.

"I want to say I believe in you," Bill said. "But I just don't have anyone else to ask this from." He didn't really think that Baltar will ever waste his time on trying to do as he asked, but he had to ask.

"What is it?" Bill asked as Lee kept quiet, trying to figure out what his father was thinking.

"Baltar thinks he managed to build your little time machine," Lee said hesitantly. He thought it was nonsense.

Bill didn't move. He was stunned. That was a sentence he never thought he would hear. "Dad?" Lee said, worried.

"I can't believe it," Bill mumbled quietly.

"Frankly, me neither," Lee said, chuckling. His face turned serious again when he saw that his father wasn't laughing. Bill got up on his feet in a quick move.

"You have to take me to him," he said, feeling the blood running through his veins again.

"Why, dad? It probably won't even work. It's too risky," Lee said, still sitting.

"No, I have to try. It's all I have left," Bill said, almost begging.

"What's so bad with the life you have? Peace and quiet with a beautiful view," Lee insisted.

"All of that is worth nothing if I'm alone. I need to try and get her back to me," Bill said. He wasn't going to give up on this one.

"What if you die? What if you do go back to the past but you can't come back? Dad, it's too dangerous! Laura Roslin is long gone," Lee tried one last time, although he knew what the outcome of this argument will be.

"It's a win-win situation for me. I've got nothing to do on this planet anymore. This cabin is all I have. It's the only thing keeping me alive, because it makes me feel like she's almost with me. But I can't take it anymore, Lee. I just can't." He looked at his son with wet eyes, trying hard not to cry.

Lee got up and approached his dad. He put his hand on his father's shoulder in understanding. "Okay, dad, okay. I'll take you to see Baltar. And may the gods be with you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Sharon Raydor walked into the murder room, just like every morning. She greeted her squad members and went inside her office, leaving the door open, for there was no important work to do. The past week has been a slow one. She sat down to her desk and smiled as she remembered Lieutenant Flynn's comment from yesterday. He wondered if it was a holiday for criminals "or something".

She loved his sense of humor. When she first met him and the rest of the squad, he seemed somewhat mean to her, with every other sentence that came out of his mouth being said in sarcasm. But once she got on his good side, she got to enjoy his sarcasm, rather than being offended by it. Besides, he was an excellent professional and that was something that she really liked.

"Captain," she heard suddenly and looked at the door to her right. It was detective Sanchez. "We got a call. Some kind of a bizarre murder downtown. The rest of the squad is already on its way there."

"Bizarre?" Sharon asked in fear. The words 'murder' and 'bizarre' don't go well together. She got on her feet, grabbed her purse and walked quickly towards the door. "Thank you, Detective. Let's go."

(***)

Sanchez parked the police car in a no-parking zone that was near the crime scene. Sharon tapped with her left hand fingers on her knee nervously. She knew they had no choice but to park there, since there were no legal parking spaces available in the vicinity, but she hated breaking the rules. It was almost unbearable for her.

The two got out of the car and walked over to the ally, where the crime has occurred. Lieutenant Provenza waited for them outside the yellow tape and brought them up to speed.

"We don't know much, Captain. When we arrived, patrol officers were getting this weird looking guy inside a patrol car. Apparently, this witness…" he pointed at a far spot to his right and Sharon saw a young man talking with Lieutenant Flynn. "…Saw the weird looking guy standing over the body with blood on his hands," Provenza finished his sentence.

"Why is he weird?" Sanchez asked.

"He's wearing some sort of sci-fi costume and keeps saying he's 'not from around here'." Lieutenant Provenza rolled his eyes in annoyance. He's been on the force for many years, and saw his share of crazy people.

"How did the witness get the patrol here before the… weird looking guy could escape?" Sharon asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable for calling him that way.

"He says he ran back to the street and saw two patrols having a break. They were the ones who arrived first on the scene… And they back up this part of his story," Provenza explained. Sharon nodded and then crossed the yellow tape, approaching the witness, who was still talking to Lieutenant Flynn.

"So you didn't see the suspect actually committing the murder, right?" Flynn asked, his small notebook and pen at the ready to write the witness' answer.

"No, I told you already. When I entered the ally I saw him standing over the body. He wasn't moving," the witnessed said. "I mean, the suspect, not the dead guy," he added.

Flynn looked at him, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. He looked to his right and saw Sharon standing there quietly, listening on the interrogation. He told the witness to wait, and walked over to Sharon. "Ah, Captain. I'm done with the primary questioning of our witness," he said.

"Good, Lieutenant. Ask him when he will be able to join us at the station for further questioning," Sharon said, clutching the strap of her purse, which was hanging from her shoulder. Flynn nodded. "Where is the suspect?" she asked, looking behind him. Flynn pointed behind her and she turned around to look at a patrol car. She thanked him and walked to the car. She was a few feet away from it when she heard "Captain!"

Sharon stopped walking and turned to face Tao. "Yes, Lieutenant?"

"This guy… I think he's crazy. So maybe you shouldn't get too close. Maybe you should wait for the interview room," Tao said, worried.

"You're right, Lieutenant, I'll wait," Sharon said and turned around in order to walk over to the body and examine it. Before she managed to take one step though, there was a loud bang from behind her, followed by yells and more loud bangs. She turned back quickly and saw the suspect inside the patrol car, hitting his body against the car door. He was looking at her, yelling something. Sharon tried to listen, but it was muffled by the car. She frowned and kept on looking at him. The suspect continued to bang his body against the door.

"Lieutenant, what is he saying?" Sharon asked Tao, who was standing closer to the patrol car.

Tao listened for a moment and said, "I think he's saying the name… Laura."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

Sharon stared at him in shock. She didn't know who Laura was, but the mere sight of that man trying so desperately to get out of the car and reach someone, was mesmerizing. She never felt such a burning need to reach anyone. The man continued yelling from inside the car, his eyes fixed on her.

"Captain, patrol should take him away. I think he needs a psychiatric evaluation," Tao said, looking carefully at Sharon. She didn't look back, but gazed at the car. "Captain?" Tao said again, raising his voice a little. Sharon startled and looked at him.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" she asked, absent-mindedly.

"Should patrol take him away?" Tao repeated patiently.

"No. I want this man out of the car. Maybe he has something important to say," Sharon said, ignoring Tao's surprised look. "Like a confession."

"He didn't even tell us his name," Tao said, but when he saw Sharon's firm look, he went to get the patrol officers.

Sharon took a few steps towards the car. The man inside stopped banging his body against the door. He looked at her, begging without words. "Here, Captain," Tao said behind her, when he returned with two big patrol officers.

"Officers, please, let this man out and keep holding him until we're done," Sharon said. She watched as the two patrols approached the car and opened the door. They grabbed the man by his arms and helped him out. All three were now facing Sharon and Tao, who were standing a few feet away.

"Laura… I can't believe it…" the man mumbled faintly. He didn't seem dangerous at all. In fact, Sharon thought, his eyes were kind as he looked only at her, and he seemed exhausted. "I thought I failed the mission," he added in a low voice, as if he was embarrassed.

Sharon took a few more steps towards him. The man straightened his back. He looked honorable, standing like that. "Sir," Sharon started. "Who are you looking for? Who is Laura?" she asked.

The man frowned at her in confusion. "You are," he said. "Laura Roslin…"

"No, Sir. I am Captain Sharon Raydor of the LAPD. You seem a bit confused. Do you know what your name is?" she asked gently. The man looked genuinely confused, and she felt sorry for him.

"This is offending. I'm William Adama, retired Admiral of the Galactica," he said proudly. "And you… You're not Laura?" he couldn't believe the similarity between the two women. It was like they were the same person. It couldn't be a coincidence.

Sharon turned her head to look at Tao, who was standing behind her. She whispered, "Lieutenant, go look up the name Laura Roslin. Let's see if he's making her up." Tao nodded and left. Sharon turned back to face William Adama. "Mr. Adama, are you from LA?" she asked.

Adama chuckled and Sharon raised her eyebrows in surprise. "I'm not even from this planet, Madame… Captain," he felt so weird calling her like that. She was no Captain to him. She was the president.

"What planet are you from?" one of the patrols asked, chuckling. He couldn't hold back his disparagement.

"Excuse me," Sharon said slowly, sending him a piercing look.

"Sorry, Captain," said the officer, trying not to laugh.

"I'm from Caprica. And so are you," Said Adama, looking at Sharon, who looked back at him with a sealed face. "Or at least, Laura was…"

"Okay, gentlemen, you can take him into custody," Sharon said. This conversation wasn't giving her any real information, and she didn't have time for fairytales.

"What's that? Are you taking me to the brig?" Adama asked, as the two patrol officers tried to turn him back to the car.

"Sir, I have no idea what you're talking about," Sharon crossed her hands over her chest, fed up. "We'll get you some medical help, don't worry," she added as she saw the desperate look on his face, before she turned away and started walking towards the dead body.

One of the patrols put his hand on Adama's head and tried to make him get back inside the car. "Wait! I can prove it to you!" he yelled, struggling to stay outside the car. Sharon stopped walking abruptly and turned back.

"Stop!" she ordered the patrol officers. At once, they stopped struggling with Adama, and got him back to a standing position. Sharon walked back towards them, stopping very close to Adama. "How can you prove anything of what you said?" she asked slowly, genuinely intrigued.

"In my pocket there are three pictures and an ID," Adama said, looking down to his chest. "Please, take a look, it's in my jacket." Sharon hesitated for a moment, not sure if she should come even closer to this guy and actually touch him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

"Please," Adama begged. "I'm not crazy! You can see for yourself."

Sharon drew air quickly and took the last step towards Adama, without looking him in the eyes. She was inches from him, reaching slowly to the pocket of his jacket. Adama could smell her sweet perfume. It filled his lungs and took control over him, blurring his senses. It had nothing to do with Laura's smell, but it was mystifying.

Sharon felt inside his pocket and touched something. She grabbed it with the tips of her fingers and pulled it out quickly, taking a step backwards. Adama didn't move. Finally, she looked him in the eyes for a few seconds, and then looked down at the pictures in her hand. Her eyes grew wide open at the sight of the first picture. In it, were Adama and a woman who looked just like her. The resemblance was astonishing. Their arms were around each other's waists and they were smiling. Sharon looked at the other picture. Adama and the woman were also in it, along with a blond woman and a young man. They were all smiling. She flipped the picture. On the back of it, was written in black ink, "President Roslin, Admiral Adama, Apollo and Starbuck."

Sharon looked up to see Adama waiting patiently. She looked at the last picture. This one was of a young William Adama, standing next to a weird vehicle that resembled a small airplane, but not quite.

The last thing in Sharon's hand was a weird looking ID card, with Adama's name and picture. The title read 'The 12 colonies' and right beneath it, was written, 'Caprica'. Sharon stared at it for a moment, and then she lowered her hand, still holding the pictures and ID, and looked up again.

"Officers, take him to the station," she said firmly. A dark shadow of disappointment fell on Adama's face. "I'm sorry," she said coldly to Adama, a second before the patrols started getting him inside the car. This time Adama didn't object. He knew that he will see her soon and get another chance to explain.

The patrol car drove away. Sharon watched it disappear behind a building as it turned right, to another street. She had a strange feeling about this man.

"Captain? Are you okay?" she heard a voice and turned to see who it was. Lieutenant Flynn was standing there, waiting for her to answer.

"Look," she said shortly and handed him the pictures. Flynn didn't hesitate to take them from her. He looked at the pictures, and on his face appeared the same stunned expression that Sharon had on hers, a few minutes ago.

"Do you know him from before?" he asked, looking at her.

"No. That's not me," Sharon said, pointing at the picture, still in Flynn's hand.

"What do you mean? She looks just like you. Do you have a twin?" Flynn asked. He didn't really know anything about his Captain's personal life. She rarely ever mentioned anything about her life, and the squad members respected her privacy.

"Not that I know of. I only have one brother," she said without any further details.

"Well, then, somewhere in this world, there's a woman who looks just like you," Flynn said, handing her back the pictures. "And this weird looking guy…"

"Adama," Sharon interrupted him. She didn't like calling people names.

"This Adama guy knows her. So ask him about her," Flynn said and Sharon nodded.

(***)

The squad came back to the station after processing the scene. Tao was already at his desk when they all walked in.

"Captain!" he said, and Sharon walked to him. He got up and walked towards her, meeting her in the middle of the murder room. He had a folder in his hand. "I did the check up you wanted and only found one Laura Roslin. In San Diego." Tao handed her the folder and she took it, opening it hastily.

This Laura Roslin was 86 years old. "No…" Sharon mumbled, more to herself than to Tao. "She looks nothing like me…"

"Excuse me?" Tao asked in confusion.

"Nothing, Lieutenant. Thank you," Sharon said, and started walking to her office.

"Oh, the suspect is in interview room 1," Tao added, just before Sharon opened her office door. She froze in her place. Tao watched her back, perplexed. Sharon turned from the door and walked away without saying a word. She walked down the halls quickly, her heels knocking on the floor with every hasten step. Finally, she reached the door of interview room 1. She put her hand on the handle and stopped. Her heart was beating frantically.

Sharon couldn't remember the last time she was afraid of talking to anyone. 'Get a grip on yourself', she thought and straitened the black suit she was wearing. She adjusted her glasses, took a deep breath and opened the door.

William Adama's head was bowed down. He looked up when the door opened, fighting the urge to smile as he saw Sharon entering the room. She was already skeptical about him as it is. She signaled the officer that was guarding him with her head, and he stepped outside the room, shutting the door behind him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Sharon sat down across the table from Adama. He didn't move, but only watched her. She put the folder on the table, and watched him back. She had a hard time believing this guy was insane. He was too relaxed, looking at her from across the table. He had a sparkle in his eyes, as if he knew something that she didn't, and it was the sweetest secret. It unnerved her.

Sharon couldn't read him, and it felt weird. She hated not seeing the whole picture – something she was very much used to. Growing up, she used to sit on the side and watch people go about their lives without noticing her. She became quite good at reading facial expressions and it helped her a lot at work. But this man… his calm facial expression did not match the situation.

"Mr. Adama," she finally said, slowly, "do you know why you're here?"

Adama waited before he answered, his gaze buried deep in her eyes. "I'm here because you think I'm crazy," he said calmly.

Sharon's eyebrows rose in surprise, but only for a split second, before she realized it and changed her expression back to her usual unreadable one. "You are here," she started slowly, "because you were standing next to a dead body with blood on your hands." She waited for him to say something, but he just kept looking at her. "Listen," she said and leaned forward, placing her arms on the table, "I understand that bad things happen, and people sometimes lose control. It happens. But if you don't tell me your side of the story, the DA will use the evidence we already have. It doesn't look good for you."

Adama opened his mouth to speak but stopped. He looked at her, frowning, and eventually said, "I don't have a side in this story."

Sharon leaned back and let out air in attempt to remain calm. "What were you doing in the crime scene, then?"

Adama considered his words. He had no idea where Baltar's machine had taken him. It wasn't his past, that's for sure. He was certain he shouldn't mention the machine. They were already considering locking him up for being crazy. He decided he should invent something, rather than telling the truth. "I can't remember," he said eventually.

"You can't remember?" Sharon asked, doubtfully. "You remembered you name earlier. You remembered a Laura Roslin." Adama straightened his back at the sound of that name. His face wore a solemn expression.

"I will never forget that name," he said, darkly. "I don't know why I can't remember anything. All I know is that I walked by this ally and I saw a man hunched over another man. He turned to look at me and then ran away. When he disappeared at the other end of the ally, I went to check if the man on the ground was still alive. That's when another young man appeared and asked me what I was doing. Before I could answer he ran away and a few moments later, your colleagues came and arrested me." Adama finished and leaned forward with his arms on the table. Sharon did the same. Her face was fairly close to his now, and he felt like he was looking at Laura. The sensation was uncanny.

"You're saying you witnessed the murder?" Sharon asked, and Adama knew she still didn't believe him. He nodded. "So you should be able to sit with a sketch artist and describe the murderer?"

Adama muttered a faint "yes" as the door opened. Sharon turned around in her sit. It was Provenza.

"Captain, can you come out for a moment?" he asked. Sharon turned back to Adama and excused herself before she got on her feet and stepped outside the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Yes, Lieutenant?" she said in her usual calm manner. Deep inside she just wanted to go back inside and continue the conversation.

"I looked this guy up by name, DMV records, finger prints and facial recognition. I found nothing," Provenza said in a low voice. Sharon didn't respond for a moment.

"What do you mean nothing?" she asked in disbelief.

"The man doesn't exist, at least not in the USA. He's probably illegal," Provenza suggested. "I contacted the FBI and the Interpol. They don't have a William Adama on any of their lists, but they're also checking with facial recognition. It might take a few hours."

"Okay, Lieutenant. Good. Try to contact the Mexican police. Maybe they do have him on their records. And get a sketch artist here," Sharon said and Provenza nodded. He left to do as she asked, and Sharon got back inside the interview room. She sat down again and looked at Adama. The information that was just given to her raced through her mind. It was bothering; this man was like a ghost.

"I have a question for you," Adama said suddenly, taking Sharon by surprise. "If you let me, of course, as the one who's asking all the questions."

Sharon thought for a moment, then said, "sure."

Adama hesitated. He wasn't sure that asking this question won't get him in trouble.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Considering how much in trouble he already was, Adama decided to go ahead and ask. "The body had stab wounds. I saw them," he started saying, and Sharon frowned in concentration. "So where's the knife? You didn't find it on me," Adama stopped and waited for Sharon to answer. She sat there, across the table, and stared at him, considering her words. Finally, she leaned forward again, placing her arms back on the table.

"SID is processing the scene as we speak. They'll find it in the ally," she said, but Adama shook his head, leaning forward too. He liked being this close to her.

"No, you won't. The killer has it. It was in his hands when he ran away," he said. The tiniest smile appeared on corner of his mouth.

"Maybe you should get a lawyer," Sharon said slowly.

"I didn't do anything wrong. Even YOU don't believe I did," he said, and Sharon's eyebrows once again rose in surprise. "Yes, I can see it in your eyes," he added.

"I don't go by what I BELIEVE or don't, I go by the evidence," Sharon said in a quiet, yet threatening voice.

"Then lucky me, because you won't have any against me," Adama remained calm. Sharon's menacing tone didn't scare him. It just reminded him of the beginning of his relationship with Laura. They didn't get along much, and argued quite a lot. Besides, his father was a lawyer for many years, and even though the law here was surely different, it couldn't be THAT different. This world seemed almost as advanced as the old world on the 12 colonies.

"We'll see about that. In the meantime," Sharon said, opening the folder that she brought with her. "My detectives looked for this Laura Roslin in the area, and only found an 86-years-old lady in San Diego," she slid the folder across the table, so he can see it.

Adama laughed for the first time since he got to this weird world, but Sharon heard despair in his laughter. "You won't find her. She's not from around here. And she's… dead," his face got serious again. Sharon felt sorry for him. He seemed so small, almost like a child, every time he talked about this Laura Roslin.

A quick knock sounded from behind her and the door swung open. "Captain," it was Detective Sykes, rather short of breath. "The sketch artist is here," she said, and added as she saw the surprised look on her captain's face, "he was already in the building, working with rubbery/homicide when we called him."

Sharon nodded. "Thank you, Detective. Tell him to join us here."

"Sure… Oh, and Rusty is back from school. Says he's hungry," Sykes added with a little smile.

"I'll take care of it," Sharon said, returning her a little smile. Sykes closed the door and Sharon turned back to face Adama.

"Rusty… Is her your son?" Adama asked. He wanted to know more about her. A lot more.

"Not exactly," Sharon replied briefly. "The sketch artist will be here any second now. I suggest you do your best in describing the so-called murderer, if you want to get out of here soon," she said and got up.

"So you believe me?" Adama asked. His eyes sparkled again. Sharon looked at him in silence for a few seconds, then turned around and left the room.

(***)

Rusty was sitting in Sharon's office when she entered. "Hey," he said.

"Good after noon. You sound tired," Sharon said as she walked to her chair.

"I didn't sleep very well at night," he said and yawned.

"I'm afraid it's going to be a long day. We just got a case, a few hours ago," Sharon said in an apologizing tone.

"Well, can't I just go home then? I'm a big boy," he said and Sharon smiled.

"I don't want you to be alone there for so many hours," she said and prepared for the protest.

"Fine," Rusty said.

"Fine?" Sharon repeated in disbelief.

"Yeah. I'll do my homework and eat here, and then I'll go home. If it's okay with you," Rusty said politely. Sharon smiled again and nodded. Rusty grabbed his backpack and left the office through the middle door, just as the door to Sharon's right opened. She never understood the need for three doors in this office.

Flynn entered the office. "Captain, Sykes is sitting with the suspect and the sketch artist," he informed her. Sharon thanked him, but he didn't leave. "You should have asked him where he got his costume from," he said, mockingly.

"Andy…" Sharon said, trying to suppress a smile. Flynn gave her a little smile and just stood there, staring at her in an awkward silence.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

"Anything else?" Sharon asked gently, leaning back on her comfortable chair. The situation was starting to torture her at this point. Many times she caught Flynn staring at her in the same way, a way she couldn't quite recognize. It embarrassed her, but she didn't say anything. She didn't dare. Every time she caught Flynn staring, he'd look away and go about his business. A few times she even caught him checking her out, but she was sure it was all in her mind.

"Uh…" Flynn muttered. "No news yet," he said and shrugged.

"Okay," Sharon said, hoping Flynn will take the hint. He nodded.

"Do you need help with anything?" he asked. Sharon smiled and shook her head. "Okay," he said and left hesitantly. Sharon let out air when the door was shut once again and she was alone. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, trying to have a moment of relaxation.

(***)

Flynn was sitting at his desk. He'd just listened to this guy from Interpol saying that they got no results about their suspect. He wanted to go and update Sharon, but the awkwardness in her office earlier made him reluctant to go in there again. There was a weird vibe between him and the Captain. It wasn't always there. When he first met her, he couldn't stand her, just like the rest of the squad. But when she became their Captain and they were all on the same side… It was so confusing for him. He always repressed any feelings or thoughts about her. He didn't want to face it. But he also couldn't ignore it, every time she was in the same room with him.

"Flynn?" he heard a voice next to him and turned to look. Provenza was standing next to him. "Did you just talk with Interpol?"

"Oh, yeah, they found nothing about the weird guy, just like the FBI," Flynn said.

"Okay. So why aren't you telling Raydor this?" he asked in confusion. Flynn wasn't the day-dreaming type. Provenza muttered "come on," as he walked away.

Flynn nodded and got on his feet. Just when he was about to walk to her office, Sharon stepped outside. "Captain," he said, and she turned to look at him as he walked towards her. "Interpol and FBI got nothing."

"Are you serious?" she asked in desperation and Flynn nodded.

"Bad news from Mexico too," Sanchez said as he walked towards them. "There's no William Adama that matches the picture of him Tao took." Sharon shook her head.

"Who is this guy?" she asked no one in particular. Flynn and Sanchez shook their heads. "Andy, find out when will Dr. Morales be ready with the body. Sanchez, do the same with SID. I want this scene processed as fast as they can." Flynn and Sanchez nodded and left each to his desk, just as Sykes entered the murder room.

"Captain, here's the sketch," she showed her the paper.

"Good. Give it to Tao, so he can run it through facial recognition," Sharon said after she took a look at the sketch.

"Okay. Um… the suspect was asking me all kind of questions," Sykes said hesitantly.

"Like what?" Sharon frowned.

"Just… things. Like who's the president," she waited to see Sharon's reaction.

"Maybe he needs medical attention. Can you make sure he sees a doctor as soon as possible?" Sharon asked and Sykes nodded, muttering "sure" as she left.

(***)

Sharon entered her apartment late at night. She expected it to be dark and quiet, but she found Rusty in the living room, watching a movie.

"Rusty! It's after midnight," she said as she approached the couch he was sitting on.

"Sharon! Tomorrow is Saturday," he replied.

"Oh…" Sharon muttered and sat down heavily. "Right."

"I get it you have to work again this weekend," he said, rather disappointed.

"Yes, Rusty, I'm so sorry," she apologized.

"Yeah… Never mind," he said, trying to sound cool. While he didn't mind being at home alone, he really liked their weekends together. Sharon always tried for them to have a fun weekend, and they always did. Last weekend she took him to Venice Beach, and for the first time he was able to just be a kid and enjoy it. The few times he went there with his mom and her boyfriend, he had to keep quiet and behave all the time if he didn't want to get hit in the face.

Sharon could tell she was disappointing him, and it was the last thing she wanted to do. "Rusty," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "I promise I'll make it up to you. And you know I always keep my promises," she smiled at him. After a few seconds he smiled back. He believed her.

"Wanna watch this movie?" he asked and she nodded and adjusted herself on the couch to a more comfortable position for watching TV.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

"Here you go," said the officer that was escorting him, indicating the cell to their right. Adama looked at the bars in despair. The officer ordered him to go inside, and he obeyed quietly. Inside was already a man sitting, his held bent down. Adama sat down on a bench across the cell, and the man looked up slowly. The night has already fallen and the lights around the cells were dim.

"Oh, look, it's Lieutenant Spock," said the man, mockingly. His voice was hoarse.

"Excuse me?" Adama asked.

"I heard about you from… a friend," the man said and a crooked smile appeared on his face.

"You have?" Adama asked in confusion.

"Yes. Apparently you pissed someone off. There's a nice bounty on your head," the man said quietly, still smiling. Adama kept quiet. He didn't know how to react to the fact that someone wanted him dead. It wouldn't be the first time.

"Michaels, let's go," an officer said, opening the cell door.

"See you in county jail," Michaels said, winking menacingly, as the officer put cuffs on his hands and escorted him out. The bars rattled and closed in a loud noise.

Adama took a deep breath. His son's words echoed in his head. _What if you die? What if you do go back to the past but you can't come back? Dad, it's too dangerous! Laura Roslin is long gone_…

"Is she?" Adama muttered to himself as he lay back on the uncomfortable bench. He hoped sleep would take over him as he closed his eyes. Sharon's face appeared in his mind. She looked so much like Laura… and her demeanor wasn't too different either, from what he could see so far. Adama didn't know if their similarity was the cause of an amazing coincidence, or some other strange reason. He didn't even know what time he was in. Was it the past? The future? His mind became lighter, and his thoughts dissolved into dreams…

(***)

The next day, Sharon arrived at work early. She got a wakeup call from Tao, saying the SID report was ready, and that he got a result from facial recognition. She got up and left quickly, hoping she might wrap this case up in a few hours and go spend the rest of her weekend with Rusty. When she entered the murder room, the squad was already there, some standing and some sitting next to Tao's desk.

"Good morning, everyone," she said as she approached Tao's desk.

They all greeted her back, and Tao started talking right away, getting to his feet. "We got a hit on facial recognition. A Lionel Hernandez. According to the records, he lives in West Covina."

"I already called for a search warrant," Provenza said from his sit, grumpy as always. "It was a real joy, waking up a judge on a Saturday. It'll be faxed to us as soon as it's ready." Sharon got a glimpse on Flynn as Provenza talked. His eyes rolled up her body from somewhere around her knees and all the way to her face. She looked away just before he caught her eyes. Suddenly, she felt uncomfortable in her dark blue jeans and purple knitted shirt.

"Good, Lieutenant," she said. "Yesterday, Dr. Morales said that the killer is left-handed. So see if you can verify that when you arrest Hernandez," she added monotonically. "One of you should stay behind for the warrant."

"Captain, where are you going?" Flynn asked as she started walking away.

"To find out if our current suspect is left-handed," she said as she walked, turning her head towards him as she spoke. A few seconds later she disappeared behind the corner.

"Talking about special treatment," Flynn said bitterly, as the squad members got on their feet and prepared to go. He didn't know Sharon could still hear him. She decided to ignore his words as she walked down the corridor that led to the elevators, partially because she knew they were true. She felt something weird whenever she was around this William Adama. She couldn't quite put her finger on the feelings he arose in her, but she knew she hasn't felt like that in a very long time, if ever. He was a mystery to her. She knew nothing about him, and it meant she had no power over him. Sharon hated being vulnerable.

She reached his cell and saw him sitting inside, his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. She cleared her throat and he looked up. As soon as he saw her, Adama got on his feet. It looked as if he was standing in attention. A little smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"Captain," he said, greeting her. "Good morning."

Sharon was surprised. She didn't know how he could stay so calm in the state he was in. "And to you," she replied, her face remained sealed.

"How are you today?" Adama asked, taking a step closer to the bars.

"Uh… Adama," she said, ignoring his question. "Could you write your name here?" she asked, handing him a pen and a paper. Adama frowned in confusion.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

Adama hesitated for a moment. Sharon examined him while her hand was still stretched out, unable to read his face. Eventually, Adama took another step forward and brought his hand to hers. His fingers brushed the back of her hand as he took the pen and paper. A tingling sensation went through his body like a wave. It was the same sensation he felt years ago, when he first kissed Laura on the Colonial 1. He stared deep in Sharon's eyes for a moment as if he was trying to get a glimpse of Laura, then took a step backwards.

Sharon felt lost, for a moment. Adama's look into her eyes was so intense that she felt as if she was falling into his unknown world, and she didn't mind. When he broke the eye contact she looked away for a second, fixing her posture. "Just… write your name there," she said in a low voice and cleared her throat.

Adama brought the pen to the paper, but then he stopped. "On one condition," he said, looking again in Sharon's eyes.

"Condition?" Sharon asked in surprise. "I don't think you're in a position to ask for conditions," she added in her usual monotonic voice.

"Well, then, it's a request, not a condition," he said, calmly.

"What is it?" Sharon asked. Her tone sounded a little softer now.

"A book," Adama said.

"A book?" Sharon repeated. She wasn't expecting that. She thought he might ask for a lawyer… or at least a good meal.

"Yes, something to pass the time with. I used to read a lot…" he said and a little sad smile appeared on his face. Sharon noticed how tired his eyes were, and felt sorry for him.

"I'll see what I can do," she said tenderly, almost whispering. Once again, Adama brought the pen to the paper. This time he wrote his name on it. Sharon felt like a huge weight was being lifted from her heart when he used his right hand.

(***)

By midday, the entire squad was in the murder room, listening to Tao explaining the SID report. They were waiting to hear from Dr. Morales, who was supposed to be comparing a bloody knife, which was found in the second suspect's house, to the knife wounds on the victim.

"SID found too many DNAs on the scene; it's going to take a while before they can match one of the suspects' DNAs to the samples we took from them. That, if they left their DNA on the scene to begin with. On the body they found nothing," Tao said in elaboration.

Sharon nodded when he finished. "Dr. Morales said that there were only three, very efficient, knife wounds on the body. No overkill," she said.

"Which probably means someone hired the killer to do this job," Sanchez said in his usual, quiet tone. He always reminded Sharon of a shy child.

The phone rang. Sharon vaguely heard Sykes answering it. She was pondering the case and the information that was just given to her. "Captain," Sykes said and Sharon turned to look at her. "It's Rusty." Sharon walked over to Sykes' desk.

"I'll take it in my office," she said and Sykes nodded. "Oh, did the doctor find anything unusual with William Adama's health yesterday?" Sharon asked in haste.

"Nope. He's in perfect health physically, and he didn't think anything was wrong with him psychologically or mentally either," Sykes replied and Sharon nodded and thanked her before she went to her office and closed the door behind her. She picked up the phone and answered.

"Can I come over there? I'm really bored," Rusty said from the other end of the line.

"I don't think it's a good idea," Sharon started to say, "although…"

"Although what?" Rusty asked right away.

"I do need you to bring me something over here," she said, hesitantly.

"What do you need?" Rusty asked happily, glad he didn't have to try and convince her to let him come to the station.

"A book. It's still on my night stand; I just finished reading it last night," Sharon said, almost reluctantly. She didn't think Rusty should come over, but it was an opportunity for her to make Adama a little happy, and she really wanted to do that. "But, Rusty, you're not going to stay here for long," she added.

"Why not?" he asked, rather disappointed.

"Because we're investigating a murder," Sharon said slowly, "and it's Saturday."

"Fine."

"And you'll take a cab with the money I gave you, not a bus."

"Fine."

"See you soon," Sharon said and hung up.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

Rusty was sitting on Sharon's chair in her office, playing chess on the computer. They've just came back from lunch, and Sharon went to the interview rooms, to investigate the new suspect.

She spent twenty minutes along with Provenza, trying to make the suspect to talk, but he just sat across the table and stared at them. Eventually, they got on their feet and left the interview room, closing the door behind them.

"That was productive," Provenza said, tired, as they walked to electronics.

"Let's hope our potential witness can identify him," Sharon said and they turned a corner. Lieutenant Flynn was waiting outside electronics, accompanied by Adama. Sharon looked at him carefully as they approached them. His hands were cuffed in front of him, but his head was up in an honorable way. Sharon and Provenza came to a halt in front of them. It seemed like she didn't notice Flynn at all.

"Captain, we're ready when you are," Flynn announced. To the sound of his voice, she finally looked away from Adama.

"Let's do the line-up, then," Sharon said. She opened the door to the electronics room and poked her head inside, asking Buzz to turn off the monitors.

"I'll get the mute suspect to the line-up," Provenza said and went back to the interview room, leaving the three alone. Adama didn't move his eyes from Sharon the whole time. She entered the electronics room, and once the monitors were off, she signaled Flynn to follow her.

"Let's go," Flynn said to Adama and they entered the room. DDA Hobbs was standing in the corner, waiting. Chief Taylor was also there, sitting next to Buzz and Tao. He looked at Adama as he entered the room.

"Is there any evidence against the new suspect?" Taylor asked Sharon, who was standing behind his chair. "And I'm not talking about a suspect who's a potential witness that we can't even identify." His tone wasn't very respectful.

"You mean, except for the knife found buried in his yard?" Sharon replied in a slow, monotonic tone. Everyone in the room tried to hide their smiles, except for Adama, who had nothing to lose.

"Oh," Taylor said, just as Sykes poked her head inside the room and announced that the line-up was ready.

"Buzz, turn the monitors back on, please," Sharon said and turned to Adama. "You're going to see six men. Tell us if you see someone you recognize," she explained softly, as if she was talking to a little child. Flynn frowned at the sound of her tone. He never heard her talking like that to anyone besides Rusty.

"Number 2," Adama said, a few moments later, when he saw the men in the line-up. "That's the man from the ally." Sharon looked at Hobbs and nodded. Taylor asked Flynn to take Adama outside, so they can talk.

"Is there any evidence against THIS suspect?" Hobbs asked, pointing at the door.

"Not really. Right now there's no way to refute his version of events. He claims he checked to see if the victim was dead, and that's how he got blood on his hands," Sharon said. Her voice sounded monotonic as always, but in her heart she was excited about the possibility of releasing Adama.

"And you said earlier he's right-handed," Hobbs said and Sharon nodded. "I really don't see a reason to hold him any longer," Hobbs looked at Taylor.

"So he just turned from a suspect to a witness?" Taylor asked, getting on his feet.

"Well, if we want to use him as a witness you have to find out who he is," Hobbs said, looking around the room. "For now, I can only use him in front of the grand jury." She took her bag and said goodbye as she left the room. Sharon followed her outside and got a glimpse of her disappearing behind the corner. She turned to face Flynn and Adama, who were both staring at her. For the second time that day, Sharon became very aware of what she was wearing.

"Lieutenant Flynn, Mr. Adama is to be released as soon as possible," she said, feeling slightly uncomfortable in front of the two men. "He's no longer a suspect. Now he's a witness." She looked at Adama, trying to read his reaction, but his face remained sealed. _He should be just as good as I am in poker,_ she thought to herself.

"I'll get on it," Flynn said and started to look for the key to the handcuffs in his pockets.

"Before you leave," Sharon said slowly to Adama, "you have to give us your details. Phone number and address."

Adama kept quiet, but Sharon felt that there was something he wanted to say. "Here it is," Flynn said as he pulled the key out of his jackets inside pocket.

"I'll do it," Sharon said suddenly, causing Flynn to freeze in mid-movement. She held her hand in front of Flynn and waited for him to put the key in her palm.

"Okay," he said in confusion and gave her the key. Sharon signaled him with her eyes to leave them alone. Flynn rolled his eyes and entered the electronics room reluctantly, leaving Sharon and Adama, who were staring at each other.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11:**

"Is there a problem I can help you with?" she asked, curiously. Adama took a moment to look down, as if he was trying to find his words on the floor. Eventually he looked up again, squinting his eyes as he looked at her. Sharon could tell it was hard for him to.

"I don't have anywhere to go," he said quietly, as if every word was painful to say.

Sharon smiled sympathetically. "So, you really don't remember where you're from?" she asked gently.

"Something like that."

"Well, you're a material witness, so the police must take care of you," Sharon's mind was racing in the search of a solution. She thought about the squad members, and who would be best to leave Adama with. "Don't worry," she said reassuringly, "I'll fix this." She opened the electronics room door and asked Buzz to come to her office.

Adama waited for her to face him again, and said, "I don't want to bother anyone."

"Come with me," Sharon ignored his words and started walking down the hall, towards the murder room. Adama followed her, walking behind her. His eyes rested for a moment on her hair and then they rolled down to her back slowly and continued on their path downwards, reaching more interesting territories. All he could think of at that precise moment was how good a pair of jeans could look on a woman. He only looked away from Sharon when they entered the murder room and she stopped, turning on the spot to see him. "Wait here," she said as Buzz emerged from the corridor and she signaled him to enter her office. "You can take a chair."

Adama sat down on the closest chair as Sharon followed Buzz to her office and shut the door behind her. She walked around the desk to her chair and sat. A note from Rusty lied on the book he brought from home to her request. _I'm in the break room_, the note said. Sharon removed the note and moved the book to the side of the desk.

"Buzz," she opened. "There's something very important I want you to do."

"There is?" Buzz asked in concern.

"Yes. I would have done it myself if I could."

"What is it?" Buzz had the feeling he was walking into a trap, but he couldn't help it.

"Our new witness, William Adama."

"What about him?"

"He needs a place to stay," Sharon examined Buzz's reaction. He seemed confused. "Just for a few days, until we can find out more about him."

"You mean, you want me to take him in?" Buzz asked in surprise, his eyes widened.

"We can't let a material witness wander the streets," Sharon explained in a tone that said 'you really have no choice here'.

"It's just for a few days?" Buzz tried to reassure himself.

"Absolutely," Sharon nodded in confident, but the fact was, she had no idea how long it will take to discover information about Adama.

"Fine," Buzz said in defeat. "As long as I don't need to babysit him…" he muttered.

Sharon got to her feet. "Of course not," she said as she crossed the office and opened the door, asking Adama to join them. "Buzz will be taking you in," she said to him when he reached the entrance. Buzz got to his feet as well.

"Thank you," Adama took a few steps forward and held his hand to shake Buzz's, "I really appreciate it." Sharon sent the reluctant Buzz a firm look.

"No problem," he muttered and shook Adama's hand. "Excuse me," he said and left the office. Sharon closed the door and invited Adama to sit as she walked back to her desk and sat.

"Impressive," Adama said, looking around the office.

"You like the office?" Sharon asked as she leaned her chin on her hand.

"I mean YOU are impressive," he said, taking Sharon by surprise. She felt her cheeks heating up and hoped she wasn't blushing. She didn't like to show her emotions. She considered it as vulnerability, a way for others to hurt her.

"Thank you," she said eventually and cleared her throat. Her eyes fell on the book and she was relieved to change the subject. "Oh, I have a book for you, if you still want it," she took the book in her hand. "I just finished reading it, it's good."

"Of course I want it. Why not?" Adama felt like he was almost talking to Roslin.

"I thought you wanted it to pass time in the cell," Sharon said.

"That was the primary purpose, yes, but I'd still love to read it."

"Good."

"What's it called?"

"The Time Traveler's Wife."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

It's been a week since Adama was released. At first, the squad members tried to look for information about him, but after two days of finding absolutely nothing, they gave up and concentrated on another case, leaving Adama's case pending.

Sharon was sitting in her living room after a long day of visiting museums with Rusty. A law book she's been pretending to be reading in the past week was lying on the table. She stared at it for a few minutes, deep in thoughts. She'd visited Adama shortly at Buzz's apartment twice, and they finally talked like normal people and not like a captain and a suspect or a witness. Something about him captured her. Maybe it was the mystery that surrounded him, or maybe it was just the way he was – a gentleman, smart, honorable. She respected those qualities in a man. At times he reminded her of her husband, before his addictions changed him and she had to leave home with the kids.

Sharon leaned forward and took the book in her hands. She opened it at a seemingly random page, and saw the three pictures she took from Adama over a week ago. The woman that resembled her was still a mystery to her. She asked Adama about her, but he only said she was dead and she dropped the subject, seeing how sad his eyes became at the mention of that name.

"Sharon," Rusty startled her. She closed the book quickly, hiding the pictures.

"I thought you went to sleep," she said, distracted.

"I was about to when I got a text from Julio…"

"You get texts from Julio?" Sharon asked in surprise.

"Yeah, we all text each other," Rusty said as if it was obvious to all, "except for Provenza, he doesn't really get along with texting." Sharon waited for him to continue. "Anyway, they're all going tomorrow to Buzz's to watch football and they invited me. So… can we go?"

"We? I thought they invited you."

"Because you don't like football, but I want you to come too. You can see Adama, I know you like HIM," Rusty said mischievously, trying not to chuckle.

Sharon's eyes widened in surprise and Rusty knew he was spot on. It wasn't easy getting a physical reaction from her. "I…" she stuttered.

"Good. We have to be there sometime before 4:00pm. Night!" Rusty rushed to his room before Sharon could react.

(***)

"I can't believe I'm spending my SUNDAY with you people," Provenza said as he and Flynn entered Buzz's apartment, seconds after Sharon and Rusty. Tao was sitting on the couch between his son and Sanchez. Sykes was sitting on the other couch. She signaled Rusty to come sit next to her.

"Where's your roommate?" Rusty asked Buzz.

"In the guestroom, why?" Buzz asked, frowning.

"Just asking," Rusty shrugged and went to sit next to Sykes. Provenza sat down on the armchair, leaving Flynn and Buzz to sit on the plastic garden chairs that Buzz brought especially for the occasion. Sharon stood in the back, unnoticed by the enthused men and Sykes. She hesitated for a second, and then slipped into the short corridor that led to the two bedrooms. She stood in front of the open door to Adama's room, and watched him. He was sitting on his bed, reading a book. It wasn't the one she'd given him. She assumed he'd finished it already.

Adama looked up and saw her, closing the book with a little smile. He got to his feet and invited her in. Sharon stepped from the shadowy corridor into the bedroom light, and Adama could appreciate her look in a blue, flowing dress that showed a little of her knees. The light-grey jacket was hanging loosely open on her torso.

"Hello," she said, thrusting her hands in her jackets pockets.

"I was hoping you'd come, but I didn't think you liked football," Adama said and took two steps forwards. One more step and he'd be inches from her.

"Oh, I don't," Sharon said and regretted it right away, as Adama's smile grew wider.

"So you came for your book," he said.

"My book?"

"You know what they say," Adama opened a drawer in the nightstand and pulled out Sharon's book, "never lend books."

"Well, then, it's not a loan. Consider it a gift," she smiled without taking the book from his stretched out hand.

Adama smiled again and dropped the book on the bed. He took the last step towards Sharon. She felt her body getting tense as he was inches from her and she could almost hear his heartbeats. She was about to step backwards, but before she could do anything, Adama tilted his head down and touched her lips with his.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

Adama moved his hands up her arms and stopped just beneath the shoulders. Sharon felt a tingling wave swimming up and down her stomach. As Adama deepened the kiss, the wave swirled hysterically, making her short of breath. She had to make an effort to keep her knees from caving in as his tongue caressed hers. For a few moments, Sharon's entire world was that kiss. Nothing else existed.

Adama pulled away and opened his eyes to see Sharon's reaction. She stayed frozen for a second with her eyes closed and mouth slightly open, before she realized the kiss was over. She opened her eyes slowly and looked at Adama, who had the tiniest smile on the corner of his mouth. His hands were still holding her arms.

"We shouldn't be doing it," Sharon whispered, still weak.

"I'll never do it again if you don't want me to," he said in his low, hoarse voice.

"I'm not HER," Sharon said in sadness.

"I know," Adama almost whispered it before he pulled her body close to his and kissed her again, this time brushing her lips gently. He looked her deep in the eyes when they parted again. Sharon knew it was wrong. Getting involved with Adama meant risking the trial he was supposed to testify in. _That, if we ever find out who he is_, she thought to herself.

"Excuse me," she suddenly heard a voice behind her and jumped. Adama took his hands off of her arms as he looked over her shoulders at the entrance. She turned around and saw Flynn standing there. She didn't know if he saw them kissing, but she definitely knew that he can see the guilty expression on her face and the embarrassment. Adama didn't seem to mind getting caught at all.

"Yes, Andy?" she asked and cleared her throat, trying to regain her composure.

Flynn just stared at them for a few seconds. Sharon looked at Adama and then back at Flynn.

"Can I talk to you?" Flynn asked eventually. "Alone."

"I'll be in the living room," Adama said, honorably as always, and left. Flynn didn't move his eyes from him until he couldn't see him anymore. He seemed indignant.

"You can't be serious with this guy," he said finally, and quickly added, "Captain."

"Excuse me?" Sharon said slowly, emphasizing every letter. _He saw us_, she thought.

"Sorry for being so blunt, but you don't even know him. For all we know, he could be dangerous." Sharon let him finish talking. Usually, she wouldn't let anyone invade her privacy like that, but she found it hard getting angry at him when he talked in this almost begging tone. It sounded like he was genuinely worried. Still, she wasn't about to share her innermost feelings with him.

"I'm sorry, but I don't see how it is any of your business," she said monotonically.

"Maybe it's not, but you still shouldn't get involved with a man you know absolutely nothing about!" Flynn insisted. He felt his cheeks heating up in anger.

"I think I'm old enough to be able to make my own decisions…"

"You're being naïve!"

Sharon couldn't help but raise her voice a little at this point. "Why do you even care?!"

"I care about you!" he let it slip. Both Flynn and Sharon had the same shocked expression on their faces.

"I…" Sharon was utterly speechless. Flynn looked down in shame.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, "I shouldn't have said that."

"No, you shouldn't have. This is completely WRONG," she said firmly.

"Well, now you know. I care about you," he said in a defeated tone. He wasn't planning on revealing his feelings for her. Ever.

Sharon couldn't believe it was happening to her. She spent so many years in loneliness, and today not one, but two men showed that they had romantic feelings for her, and from Flynn she wasn't expecting it at all.

"Andy…" she said gently in a low voice, "you need to forget about it."

"Now that this wall is down, I don't think I will be able to," he said, almost apologizing with his tone.

"It's impossible," Sharon said, frowning. She felt a lump in her throat but she made an effort not to tear up. She wasn't even aware she had feeling from him.

Flynn nodded silently. He looked at her for some time without saying anything, then he turned around and left the room.

Sharon sighed and sat on Adama's bed heavily. She was almost tempted to pinch herself, just to check that these past few minutes were real. When Adama kissed her, she was afraid she wouldn't remember how to do it, how to be with a man. She definitely didn't think she'd have to deal with two, and she had the feeling Flynn wasn't going to give up that easily.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

Sharon continued to sit on Adama's bed, her head in her hands. She had no idea how to deal with Flynn, but his words about Adama echoed in her head. She knew that her mind agreed with him – she didn't know anything about Adama and he could be dangerous. But what about her heart? It acted so strangely when he was around her, beating frantically. And that kiss…

Sharon got on her feet abruptly. She hesitated for a second. It was so comfortable hiding in this room. But she was never the type to run away or hide. She took a deep breath and walked outside the room into the corridor and from there to the living room, just in time to see them all yelling "YES!" of joy, except for Adama and Flynn, who apparently were having some kind of a silent battle with their piercing looks.

"Rusty," Sharon said, trying to sound audible over the cries of joy. Rusty turned his head from the TV to Sharon. He got up and crossed the living room as he walked towards her.

"You okay?" Rusty asked when he reached her. She noticed that Adama and Flynn were looking at them from the corners of their eyes.

"Yes, why?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"I don't know," Rusty shrugged. He could sense that something was off, but he wouldn't push.

"I'm going. Text me when you're ready to go," Sharon said in a low voice, almost whispering.

"Okay," Rusty said without asking any questions and Sharon felt deeply grateful for that. She gave him a little smile and walked to the door as he returned to his sit.

She was already in the parking lot, on the way to her car, when she heard someone calling her name behind her. She stopped and turned on the spot. Adama was walking fast to her location.

"Are you okay?" he asked when he reached her, rather short of breath.

Sharon shook her head. "I'm… confused," she said and Adama nodded in understanding.

"Do you want me to act as if nothing happened?" he asked. She couldn't believe how considerate he was.

"Yes… no. I don't know," she sighed. She wasn't exactly sure of her feeling, but she was sure she wanted him in one way or another.

Adama put his hand on her shoulder. "Let's just let things happen," he said in his calm tone, "and if you're not interested, I won't push. Just don't take away your friendship."

Sharon thought he sounded very sincere. It made her want him even more.

"Okay?" he said, waiting for her to react. Sharon didn't say a word. Instead, she came closer to him, pressing her body against his, and kissed him. Her left hand lay on his chest and her right hand pressed to her side.

"Okay," she said when she pulled away and he smiled. She fought the urge to put her head on his shoulder and let him wrap her with his serenity. There was something comforting about his arms.

"Are you leaving?" he asked.

"Yes, I'll come back later to pick up Rusty."

"You're leaving me no choice but to watch this weird game with your detectives," he said, trying to work on her conscience.

Sharon smiled. "Well…" she started saying, not sure if she should finish the sentence. "I have a lot of books in my house you can choose from." She felt her cheeks blushing and half-regretted suggesting it.

"I'd love to. But you can't keep giving them to me as gifts," he said and they started walking to Sharon's car.

"I thought you said _never lend books_," she smiled.

(***)

Sharon and Adama were sitting next to each other in her living room on the two-seater sofa. They each had a book in their hands, and many more books were sitting in a pile on the table, waiting to be picked by Adama. Two glasses of white wine rested next to the pile on the table, half full. Sharon was trying to help him chose a book. She was reading the back cover of the book she was holding, and Adama was supposed to be doing the same with the book he was holding but what he really did was to watch Sharon as she read quietly.

"This one's good," she said, breaking the silence. Looking up, she realized he hasn't been reading. "What?" she asked, smiling just a little.

"You're beautiful," Adama said. He watched her as she blushed, not sure how to react to this unexpected compliment. It's been such a long time since she got one of this sort.

"Thank you," she said eventually, her voice faint.

Adama put the book he was holding on the table. He took the one from Sharon's hands in a slow movement and put it on top of his book. He then put his left arm on the backrest and his right arm on Sharon's thigh as he leaned to kiss her. Sharon closed her eyes, savoring the moment. Her left hand touched the back of his right hand, which was still resting on her thigh, half beneath her dress. She rolled her hand up his arm slowly, over his shoulder and to the back of his neck. Adama broke from the kiss and moved to kissing her neck slowly, sending shivers down her spine.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

Sharon felt Adama's body weight pushing her backwards as he leaned forwards on her. She let him push her gently to a lying position. His hands strolled slowly up her thighs, lifting her dress, and continued to her waist. He moved down her neck with his lips as his hands moved up her torso and caressed her breasts, cupping them. Sharon let out a quiet moan, her eyes shut. She forgot about all of her worries – the job, the consequences of what they were doing… She couldn't remember the last time a man touched her, and it felt so good. She unbuttoned the shirt that Buzz loaned him as Adama kissed her lips again.

(***)

Sharon was lying on her side on the couch with her eyes shut and a little smile on her lips. Adama was lying behind her, his right arm on her bare stomach and his left arm under her head. It reminded him of a time he did the same thing with Laura. He closed his eyes and her image appeared to him. _I'm sorry_, he said to her in his mind but she didn't smile. It wasn't the same for him at all. Sharon might have looked like Laura and resembled her in some of her characteristics, but she wasn't her. He liked Sharon a lot, but she'll never be her.

Sharon thought about her husband. She remembered how in love they were when they made love for the first time. It was a completely different feeling. It was painful, of course, but she felt such a deep connection to him. A connection that had no reasonable explanation, except for love. Adama was an amazing man in her opinion, but she didn't feel the same special connection with him. She enjoyed what had just happened, no doubt about that, but there was something missing. All of a sudden, Flynn popped in her mind. Her eyes opened wide in terror. _I can't be having those thoughts_, she thought to herself, trying to get Flynn out of her mind.

Sharon's iPhone made a sound, startling them both. She leaned forward and grabbed it from the table. "It's a text from Rusty," she muttered.

"You need to go?" Adama asked and kissed her shoulder, trying to remember that it was Sharon in front of him, and not Laura.

"Yes," she said and sat up. Adama remained in his position as he watched her getting dressed quietly with a little smile on his face.

(***)

"How was the game?" Sharon asked Rusty when she entered Buzz's apartment for the second time that day. Adama followed her inside and continued to his room.

"Good. We won," he said, smiling. "What did you do in the meantime?"

"Uh…" Sharon stuttered just as Flynn came near them on his way out. He stopped at the door to wait for Provenza, a few steps from them. "Nothing, really. I was reading," she said and smiled, hoping she didn't sound weird. They thanked Buzz and said goodbye, turning to the door. Flynn was still standing there, watching Sharon in silence. His expression made her stop for a moment. He looked disappointed, as if he knew what had happened between Adama and her. It made her want to go over to him and hug him, but she just kept her sealed face and walked out of the house with Rusty.

"You seriously need to start doing other things than reading," Rusty said as they walked to the car. Sharon tried to suppress a smile, but couldn't. "What?" Rusty asked when he saw her face.

"Nothing," Sharon said, smirking.

"Why are you smiling?"

"Oh, the book that I read earlier, it was REALLY good."

(***)

Flynn walked into the murder room on Tuesday evening with Sanchez and Tao. They'd just came back from apprehending two suspects who opposed fiercely to being arrested, and they all got into a fight. Eventually, they defeated the suspects and brought them in, but they all got bruises.

Provenza got up as he saw them walking in. "Good night," he said, grabbing his jacket from the chair.

"You're leaving?" Flynn asked, frowning.

"Yes, workday is over. Some people have lives," Provenza said.

"As opposed to you?" Flynn asked sarcastically with a smile.

"Raydor wants you to look into the suspects' financials," Provenza said, ignoring his words.

"But that could take me hours!" Flynn said in reproach.

"Goodbye," Provenza said as he walked out, smiling.

Tao and Sanchez grabbed their things too and left quickly, before Flynn could even think about asking for their help. He rolled his eyes and took his jacket off, placing it on his chair. He hesitated for a moment about going to Sharon's office. Yesterday, they acted as if nothing happened on Sunday. They were strictly business, except for a few meaningful looks into each other's eyes. Eventually, Flynn decided to go in, thinking that it couldn't hurt to ask Sharon to do the financials in the morning.

"Captain?" he said as he poked his head through the door he'd just opened. Sharon was sitting at her desk, going over the evidence of the case they were investigation. She looked up as he entered.

"Yes?" she asked, fighting the urge to smile at the sight of him.

Flynn opened the door wide and stepped inside the office. He looked at Sharon quietly for a moment, wondering how he should approach the matter. Sharon's heart skipped a beat as he stood there, staring at her deep in the eyes.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16:**

"Do you mind if I do the financials in the morning?" he asked eventually.

"It's urgent we have it as soon as possible. Since we don't have any concrete evidence against the suspects, we'll have to release them sometime tomorrow if it doesn't change," Sharon explained calmly.

"Oh," Flynn said in disappointment, "I guess I'll get on it, then."

"I'll help you," Sharon said and closed the folder she was reading moments ago. She got on her feet and walked towards Flynn, who turned to exit the office when she reached him.

"Wait," she said, grabbing his arm. He turned to look at her. "Your lip is bleeding," she said, arching her eyebrows in surprise. Flynn touched his bottom lip with the tip of his forefinger.

"Damn," he muttered.

"How did that happen?" Sharon asked as she led him by his arm to a chair in her office. He sat down and watched her as she walked around the table, got a first aid kit from one of the drawers and walked back to him.

"The suspects weren't very happy with getting arrested," Flynn laughed bitterly.

"My god," Sharon muttered as she took a piece of gauze and bent down to put it on the wound. Flynn flinched a little at the touch and she whispered "sorry" absent-mindedly. He felt his wound burn for a second, but Sharon was the perfect distraction from the pain. He looked at her face, and seeing that she was concentrating on the wound, his eyes wandered to her neck and he realized he could still smell her perfume, even though it's been a long day at the station. Sharon straightened up and looked for something in the first aid kit. Flynn's eyes moved to her breasts just as she turned her head back to look at him and caught his gaze. Rolling her eyes, she crossed her arms over her chest, causing him to look up and see her look of reproof. "Here," she said and handed him the gauze. "It stopped bleeding."

Flynn reached out for the gauze but instead of taking it, he grabbed Sharon's hand and got to his feet, causing her to drop the gauze. Sharon tried to move back, but she only had a few inches before she felt the table touching her backside, leaving her no way to evade Flynn. She was suddenly aware to the fact that he was much taller than her. Flynn pulled her hand gently to his waist, and her whole body followed in obedience. He put his other hand on her neck beneath the ear as he bent his head down, stopping a few inches before his lips touched hers.

"Andy…" she whispered in a faint attempt to resist, but he locked his lips on hers before she could continue the sentence. It was nothing like kissing Adama. She felt like her heart was beating so intensely that it was about to burst outside from her chest. She felt that connection that was missing with Adama. "Oh," she sighed in mid-kiss at that realization, causing Flynn to break from the kiss and take a step backwards as he let go of her.

"Oh?" he repeated, sounding somewhat offended. Sharon shook her head. She grabbed the back of his neck with her hand before she could think this any further, and pulled him to her for another kiss. A lightening crossed the pitch dark skies outside, followed by a loud thunder and the sound of rain. Sharon pulled away from Flynn slowly and looked down, trying to catch her breath. Flynn wrapped his arms around her silently. Her head lay on his chest calmly for a few moments, her hands moving hesitantly up his back, deepening the embrace.

"This is wrong," she said weakly, her voice muffled a little by his chest.

"Yeah," Flynn replied shortly. The rain kept on pouring.

"It's a just cause for dismissal," it sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than him. Her voice was still muffled and it made her sound like a sad little girl.

"I know," Flynn said. Sharon lifted her head from his chest so she can look at him, her arms still around him.

"You're so verbal," she said in sarcasm, knowing he'd like it.

Flynn smiled. "Nobody has to know. Our private lives are private," he said in serenity, but it didn't calm her.

"I don't know…" she said, pulling away from him. She leaned on the edge of her desk and looked at the middle office door. "I hate breaking the rules," she muttered without looking at him and Flynn chuckled.

"Yep. We all know that," he said. Sharon kept quiet, still looking at anything but his eyes. "You should try it sometime, it's nice," he said in attempt to get a reaction from her. She finally looked him in the eyes, ready to tell him off, but she couldn't utter the words. It was impossible for her to be mad at him when he looked at her with this mischievous look in his eyes.

"I think I just did," she said, returning him a mischievous look of her own. Flynn smiled again.

"We should get to work if we ever want to get out of here," he said, and then quickly added, "Unless there's something else you'd like us to do…" Sharon stared at him for a moment, considering their possibilities.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17:**

"I don't think so," Sharon said eventually, although the possibilities were very tempting, and Flynn let out air in disappointment.

"To work, then," he said in resignation and held his hand for her to pass. She sent him a little smile and walk past him towards the door. _Women never get it that men let them pass first so they can enjoy the view, _Flynn smiled to himself.

(***)

Two hours later, Flynn was walking Sharon to her car. The dark, cold parking lot was filled with puddles from the rain. Luckily for them, it wasn't raining at the moment.

Flynn couldn't believe he broke through one of Sharon's walls. He knew that there were more to break through, but it was a start. He had a feeling he was going to discover an incredible human being behind those walls.

"That's me," Sharon said suddenly and stopped next to her car, facing Flynn. The car was decorated with thousands of raindrops, sparkling under the dim light emitted from the streetlights.

"I guess you can't be invited to dinner," Flynn said, understanding in advance.

"I have to go and pick up Rusty from a friend, it's late," she said. It was very tempting, to call Rusty and ask him if he could stay a little longer at his friend's house, but Sharon didn't want to make him feel like he was a burden. He wasn't a burden at all.

"Oh, he's got a friend. That's nice," he said and nodded. Sharon tilted her head to the side and smiled. She found him awfully sweet at that moment. She was so used to his sarcasm that she forgot about this ability of his to be genuinely kind. She took a step forward and lifted her head a little, kissing him on the cheek. She tried to move backwards again but he grabbed her arms and drew her closer to him for a kiss on the lips. Little raindrops started falling on them at that precise moment and Sharon pulled away. She said a hasten goodbye and got into her car quickly. Flynn walked alone to his car, unbothered by the rain.

(***)

The next day, Sharon went over to Buzz's apartment after work, to visit Adama. She knew Buzz had plans with Provenza, Flynn and Sanchez, and used that opportunity to have a conversation with Adama. They sat on the living room couch, two cups of steaming coffee on the table in front of them.

"How have you been?" Adama asked, seeing that he didn't see her in the last few days.

"Good. Busy at work," Sharon said and scratched the back of her neck. The moment was awkward. "And you?"

"Besides of reading you books? I took a few strolls outside," Adama said. Sharon smiled and nodded.

"I want to ask you to do something," she said abruptly, changing the subject. When she wanted something, she didn't like going around it.

"What is it?" Adama asked. He didn't seem scared of a challenge.

"But you have to promise to do it," she said and watched him for his reaction. His face didn't change.

"Okay, I promise. What is it?" he said in the same, calm tone.

"Tell me who you really are," Sharon said at once. He looked at her for a few moments in silence, not sure if he should do what she wanted him to.

"Okay," he said eventually, "but you're not allowed to think I'm crazy afterwards." Sharon shook her head without saying a word. Adama remained a few more moments in silence, trying to figure out how to start his story. "I'm not sure what time this is, but I think it's somehow the future," he started. Sharon frowned in confusion. "How far back does the human history go, according to your books?" he asked her.

"How far…?" Sharon started to ask but stopped herself. She decided to cooperate with him and hear him out. "The homo sapiens go back about 200,000 years."

"The…" Adama stuttered. He wasn't familiar with that expression.

"The modern human," Sharon explained and he nodded in understanding.

"Well, then, I guess I'm from somewhere around that time. Maybe less…" Sharon listened to Adama's story. She was mesmerized.

"And I've lived in that cabin ever since," he said, finishing the story. Sharon didn't respond. She didn't know how to react to something so farfetched. _If it's not true_, she thought, _at least it can make a hell of a movie_.

"So, that Laura Roslin was your…" she said. She didn't think he was crazy, but she didn't quite believe him either. She had no idea what to think.

"President, yes, and my..." he stifled his shaky voice with a cough. "You don't believe me, do you?"

Sharon looked at him, lost for words.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18:**

"I…" she stuttered, "I don't think you're crazy."

Adama nodded. "The next best thing to being believed," he said in his hoarse voice.

"Put yourself in my place. Would you have believed a story like that?" Sharon said in defense.

"Probably not," Adama said sincerely and they both smiled.

"Oh, before I forget," she said and reached for her bag, which was lying on the floor, next to her feet. She roamed inside of it for a few seconds and eventually pulled out Adama's three pictures and ID. "I'm sorry it took me so long to get this back to you," she said and handed it to him.

Adama took the pictures in his hands and looked at them with such sadness, that Sharon had to put her hand on his shoulder in consolation.

"How do you explain those pictures?" he almost whispered, trying not to cry.

"I can't really explain them. Or the fact that we have no idea who you are, and we can't find any information about you. You virtually don't exist," Sharon said gently.

"That's because I don't. Not in your time," he said quietly.

Sharon didn't know why, but she tended to believe he was being honest. She looked at him, and he seemed so fragile and miserable. She knew, by the look of him, that he felt for her the same way she felt for him – nothing more than fondness. His heart belonged to Laura Roslin, and it always will be. The sadness that took over him every time he mentioned her name or saw her picture – that wasn't fiction.

"I believe you," she almost whispered, squeezing his shoulder gently.

(***)

The next day was Saturday, and Sharon dropped Rusty off at his friend's house. He invited Rusty to check out the new gamers computer he got for his birthday. Sharon watched Rusty entering his friend's house, and drove off to visit a friend of her own. She parked her car and walked quickly to the door, knocked on it nervously and waited.

The door opened a moment later, revealing Flynn. "Hi," he said, smiling.

"Hello," Sharon said quickly and walked inside. She didn't want anyone to see her. Flynn closed the door behind her and turned around to face her. He smiled at the sight of his nervous captain.

"Nervous, much?" he asked and she rolled her eyes, sighing.

"It's weird," she said.

"What? Having friends?" Flynn asked in sarcasm and smiled. Sharon considered her reaction for a moment, and decided not to answer that.

"Maybe we should have met somewhere public," she said hesitantly.

_Women_, Flynn thought to himself. "I suggested that, but you refused," he reminded her. Sharon nodded. Flynn waited for her to say something, but she seemed to be having a debate with herself in her mind. "Have a seat," he said eventually and indicated the couch.

Ten minutes later, they were both sitting in the living room with two cups of tea. Sharon held her cup in her hands and watched the steams rise up from it, disappearing in mid-air. Flynn watched her for a few moments. It seemed like she was having an awkward moment all by herself, lost for words, and it was fun to watch. The squad members once talked about it, and they all agreed that she was socially awkward. That discussion ran through Flynn's mind as he watched her. "You know," he finally said, deciding to end her misery, "We don't really know much about you." Sharon looked up quickly, realizing it was true, and mutual.

"I could say the same thing about you… all of you," she said, adding the last part quickly.

"My life isn't interesting," Flynn said, leaning back. "I got married, had three kids and got divorced. Totally normal," he said cynically. Sharon smiled a little.

"Well…" she started slowly. "I got married fairly young, had two kids and left my husband after he started drinking and gambling," she said without giving too many details.

"So he's one of us," he said, once again in sarcasm. Sharon frowned. "I mean, alcoholics," he explained.

"Oh… yes, very much," she said and sipped from her tea.

"Why didn't you help him?" Flynn asked, trying not to make it sound like a reproach.

"He…" she started to say and stopped. It wasn't something that anyone but her family knew. She hesitated for a moment, but then decided to talk. "He got violent once, and I didn't stick around to see if it will happen again," she watched Flynn, who nodded slightly in understanding. "I was already on the force and I said I'd file a complaint against him if he doesn't stay away... two months later he moved to New York," she finished the story and they remained quiet for a moment, until Flynn's cell-phone rang suddenly, breaking the silence.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19:**

Flynn grabbed the cell from the table and looked at the screen. "What the… It's Provenza. He never calls on a Saturday," he said.

"It might be important," Sharon said reluctantly. She wanted to continue her conversation with Flynn and find out more about him.

"Yeah…" he muttered as he slid his finger on the screen to answer. "Hello?" he listened for a few seconds. "What?!" He sounded shocked. "Okay, See you there," he hung up the call and sat up straight.

"What's wrong?" Sharon asked, putting the cup on the table. She knew, by Flynn's face, that it was something serious.

Flynn put his hand on her arm in consolation. "It's Buzz and Adama. They took a walk in the neighborhood…" he didn't know how to say it.

"What happened?" Sharon asked quietly and she felt her heart sinking.

"There was a shooting… Adama didn't make it."

Sharon drew in a sharp breath, muttering "oh my god." She put her hand on her mouth and felt a lump growing in her throat as she fought back her tears, making it hard for her to breathe.

"I'm sorry," Flynn said quietly. He wasn't quite sure about what had happened between Sharon and Adama, but he knew there was something. "Provenza will probably call you too any second now."

Sharon didn't respond. Her head was tilted down, as she tried to breathe normally and calm down. After a few moments of silence she looked up again and muttered "let's go", getting to her feet quickly.

(***)

Sharon arrived seconds after Flynn at the crime scene, just one block from Buzz's apartment. The yellow tape was already hanging around it and she looked at it as she walked from her car.

"Captain…" Provenza said and she approached him. "I'm sorry."

Sharon nodded without saying a word. Her eyes fell on the white sheet that covered Adama's body in the middle of the crime scene. "Where's Buzz? Is he alright?" she asked, still looking at the sheet.

"He's being treated," Provenza said and pointed at the ambulance that was parked next to the crime scene. "He's got a scratch, nothing serious."

"Good," Sharon said in a shaky voice.

"Do you want me to take this?" Provenza asked kindly, but Sharon shook her head silently, trying not to cry. She bent slightly and lifted the yellow tape with her hand as she passed. The walk towards the body seemed to be the longest walk she ever took. She bent down next to it and pulled the sheet off of Adama's head. His eyes were shut and he looked peaceful. Sharon thought she could see the tiniest smile on the corner of his mouth. She frowned and shook her head absent-mindedly. After a moment of looking at him silently, she covered him back and walked to the ambulance.

"Captain, I'm really sorry… ouch," Buzz said before she had a chance to say anything, as the paramedic was taking care of his cuts.

"Buzz…" Sharon said slowly. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's nothing," Buzz said, sounding like a sad child.

"I'm so sorry I'd put you in this position," she said and Buzz frowned in confusion. "You took Adama in because I asked you to," she added.

"It's nobody's fault," Sharon heard a voice behind her and turned her head to see Sanchez. "Except for the killer."

"Tell me exactly what happened," Sharon changed the subject, although she couldn't help but feel guilty.

Buzz took a deep breath before he started talking. "I walked with Bill to get some things at the store. Ususally he didn't go out much, but he wanted to come along, and I didn't mind. On our way there I got a call from my sister, so I answered it. I didn't pay much attention to Bill at that moment, but I heard someone yelling 'hey' and about two seconds later there was a loud bang. I dropped to the ground and when I looked up, Bill was on the ground, a few feet away, and someone was running away in the other direction," Buzz finished his story.

"Did you see the shooter?" Sharon asked but Buzz shook his head.

"He was wearing a black hoodie, so I didn't even see his hair when he ran away," Buzz said in an apologizing tone.

"Sounds like a gang hit," Sanchez said in his low tone.

"It's weird, but yesterday he asked from me to give you something if anything happened to him," Buzz said suddenly as he remembered it.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20:**

"What thing?" Sharon asked, curious.

"I don't know, he only said it'd be in the nightstand drawer. I'll give it to you on Monday," Buzz said and Sharon nodded. They all turned to look at Sykes when she approached them with news.

"A young man was reported missing by his family a few hours ago," she said, short of breath. It looked like she ran. "His description matches the unidentified victim in the case Adama was supposed to testify in."

"Get the family to the morgue as soon as possible. If they can identify the body, we can finally get some information about this mysterious case," Sharon said and Sykes nodded and walked away. Sharon turned to look at the body. It was being put in an ambulance on the way to the morgue.

"Poor guy," Buzz muttered to her left.

"Not anymore," Sharon said, thinking about Adama's sad, lonely eyes.

(***)

A few hours later, Sharon was saying goodbye in her office to the unidentified victim's family, who just indentified him as Roger Charles, their 22-year-old son. They were exiting the office, and Tao accompanied them to the elevators. Provenza, who was also present at the meeting, sat quietly and waited for the office door to close. "Their son was hanging out with some bad crowd. Shocking," he said.

"At least they gave us his friend's name. That's a start," Sharon said, "let's look it up." Provenza got to his feet and came closer, so he can see the computer screen, as Sharon entered the name of Mark Alonso and waited for results.

"He's got a record, of course," Provenza said unsurprised and sat back down. Sharon continued to read.

"He was brought in for questioning about a child disappearance two months ago, but got released for lack of evidence," Sharon said.

"Child disappearance?" Provenza repeated. "I got a bad feeling about his."

"Yes, if our victim was involved in child kidnapping, it's much bigger than we thought," Sharon said, her eyes still on the screen.

"No, I mean I got a bad feeling about the involvement of the FBI in this case," Provenza said cynically.

Sharon finally turned to look at him. "You might be right. We should contact agent Howard on Monday, since Taylor doesn't want us to work tomorrow," She said the last part bitterly and Provenza nodded reluctantly. He got to his feet and left the office lazily, muttering "now every Saturday we have to work".

(***)

Later that evening, Rusty entered the murder room. He stopped at the entrance, watching all the policemen and detectives that were moving from here to there in haste, or concentrating on a computer screen, apparently doing something important. "What's going on here?" he asked as he approached Sykes' desk. She looked up when he talked.

"With the new leads we got on our previous case and Adama's death…"

"Adama's dead?" Rusty asked, horrified.

Flynn heard their short conversation and rushed over. "Rusty, why don't you go to Captain Raydor's office?" he sent Sykes a meaningful look but she frowned in confusion. Rusty gave them one last curious look and went to Sharon's office. The door was ajar and he opened it quietly. Sharon was so concentrated on the folder in front of her that she didn't notice him.

"Fun weekend?" he asked and she looked up.

"Oh, yes. Very entertaining," she returned the sarcasm and Rusty smiled as he entered her office and sat down.

"I heard about Adama," he said and Sharon arched her eyebrows in surprise, "how did it happen?"

She leaned back on her chair. "There was a shooting and he didn't make it," she said quietly, hoping that Rusty wouldn't notice the shakiness in her voices.

"Wow…" he said and let out air.

"On top of today's events, our previous case got very complicated a few hours ago, so I'm apologizing in advance," Sharon said, hoping that Rusty would understand, "it's going to be a busy week."

"Yeah... No problem. When is the funeral? I'd like to be there with you," he said in a shy voice.

"Tomorrow. And of course," Sharon looked at him and smiled wearily. It was at times like these when she was very grateful for having this boy in her life.


	21. Chapter 21 - Final

**Chapter 21:**

On Monday evening, the squad members were all in the murder room with Fritz. The FBI confirmed that the division stepped upon an ongoing investigation. Taylor was standing on the side, watching in silence.

"We're talking about a big human trafficking cartel from Mexico, which started operating in the USA about five years ago. From what we know so far, they deal not only with women, but also with kids. Apparently, your first victim was low on the cartel's chain. We think this cartel uses gang members to kidnap kids and bring them to a hiding place. Right now, the most logical explanation for the murder is a power struggle between two low level gang members working for the cartel. As for your second victim, Adama… I'm afraid his only crime was being a witness," Fritz finished.

"So, this investigation goes to the FBI now?" Flynn asked, annoyed.

"Yes," Fritz said in an apologizing tone.

"Oh, come on," Provenza said, looking at Sharon.

She kept quiet for a moment before talking. "There's nothing we can do about it," she said, looking around at her detectives. They didn't say a word to argue. "Thank you, agent Howard," she gave him a little nod.

"Goodnight," he said hesitantly and walked out of the murder room.

"This is ridiculous. We spent two weekends on this case," Provenza said in anger.

"Then it's a good thing the FBI took the case," Taylor said suddenly. "We can't afford many more weekends like that," he nodded at Sharon and left too.

"Well, see you tomorrow," Provenza said, still angry, as he got on his feet and grabbed his jacket. The rest of the squad followed him, except for Flynn, who agreed to write the final report for the case and remained seated at his desk.

Sharon turned to her office and walked slowly towards it as her detectives left the murder room, muttering words of goodbye. She set down on her chair as rain started falling outside, suiting her mood.

Buzz entered the office in a hurry, panting. "Captain, I forgot to give this to you," he handed her a brown, thick, envelope with her name written on it in black ink. "It's the thing Bill left for you. I didn't open it," he said, adding the last part quickly.

"It's okay, Buzz, thank you," Sharon said as she took the envelope from him.

"Goodnight," he said hesitantly, not sure if she was okay.

"Goodnight," she did her best to smile. Buzz nodded and left her office. Sharon put the envelope on her desk and stared at it. All of her moments with Adama raced through her mind like a fast-forwarding movie. He will always remain a mystery to her. Not just who he was and where he came from, but also the short time it took her to like him so much. It was so unusual to her, she could never explain it.

"Sharon?" she heard a voice and looked up. Flynn was standing at the door.

"Yes?" she said, trying to sound nonchalant.

He walked in and stood on the other side of the desk, looking at her. "Are you okay?"

Sharon shook her head. "I don't know," she said with sadness, "I can't help but feel responsible for his death."

"Are you kidding me? How is it your responsibility?" Flynn asked.

"Maybe we should have put him in protective custody. I don't know," she said and shook her head again.

"Oh, come on, Sharon… It's a cartel. We weren't expecting that. There was no obvious reason to put him in protective custody and you know it," he said and felt ridiculous for justifying her actions to her.

"Yes…" Sharon said absent-mindedly and her head was about to explode from over-thinking it.

"What's that?" Flynn said a few seconds later, pointing at the envelope.

"He left it for me. I didn't open it yet."

"What are you waiting for?"

"Courage," she said and chuckled bitterly.

Flynn walked around the desk and stopped next to her chair. "Come on," he said as he put his hand on her shoulder, hoping it will give her the courage she needed.

"Okay…" she muttered and took the envelope in her hands. Her eyes fell on her written name in Adama's handwriting. She opened it and groped inside with her hand, pulling something out. "A book…" she said and smiled, "of course."

"Searider Falcon," Flynn read the title aloud. "Never heard of it."

"Me neither," Sharon said as she looked at the worn back cover. A sticky note was attached to it. She tore it gently from the book and read.

_"Sharon,_

_If you're reading this, I'm probably dead._

_I wanted you to have this book that I always carry in my pocket._

_I used to spend hours with Laura, reading it._

_It felt good to have it on me, felt closer to her._

_Now I don't need it anymore, for I'm surely with her._

_I Hope you like it just like we did._

_William Adama._

_PS – It's not a loan. It's a gift."_

Sharon finished reading and felt herself tearing up. She didn't want to cry in front of Flynn, or anyone, for that matter. She took a deep breath, trying to make the lump in her throat disappear. Her head was tilted down so Flynn couldn't see her face.

He gave her shoulder a little squeeze and walked to the door, seeing that she needed to be alone.

"Wait," she said unexpectedly in a quiet, shaky voice and he turned around, looking at her teary eyes. He wanted to wrap her in his arms and comfort her, but he wasn't sure of her reaction to such a thing at that moment. Instead, he sat down on a chair at the other side of the desk and reached out for the book. Sharon handed it to him and leaned back on her chair, watching him curiously.

Flynn opened the first page and looked at it for a moment in concentration, before he started reading aloud: _"The raft was not as seaworthy as I'd hoped. The waves repeatedly threatened to swamp it. I wasn't afraid to die. I was afraid of the emptiness that I felt inside. I couldn't feel anything. And that's what scared me. You came into my thoughts. I felt them. It felt good."_

-THE END-

(***)

(This story continues in a new fic - **Out of Time**.)


End file.
